This invention relates to scrap shear machines and, more particularly, to a novel and highly-effective scrap shear machine wherein the maximum dimension of the scrap processed by the machine can be controllably adjusted in one pass through the machine.
Scrap metal is divided into ferrous and nonferrous categories and within each category is sold by dimension. For example, scrap having a maximum dimension of three feet, four feet, or five feet is sold by the scrap processor, depending on the requirements of the smelter or other customer for the scrap metal. If the customer will accept scrap having a maximum dimension of five feet (five-foot scrap), the scrap processor will wish to sell five-foot scrap rather than smaller scrap, because it requires additional cutting and handling and hence more expense to produce the smaller scrap. On the other hand, if the customer requires three-foot scrap, the scrap metal processor must be in a position to supply three-foot scrap, since larger scrap will be unacceptable.
At present, commercial practice is either to have several scrap shear machines for producing scrap of different sizes or to have, for example, a machine for producing five-foot scrap and to run the scrap through a second time in a different orientation in order to produce smaller scrap when necessary. The additional capital investment, handling, and work crews, as may be required, add considerably to the cost of processing the scrap metal.